People go to all lengths to make sure their personal information is highly secured when sending such information to another person.
Some transactions or communications require that you supply some sensitive information, but you should double-check who is requesting the information and make sure that you are sending it using a secure method. Although there are several options when it comes to sending personal information, but the most popular and fastest means is via the internet.
If you are conversant with the internet, you will agree that the internet is full of hackers who can intercept messages and sensitive information from a sender to a receiver.
What is the Most Secure Way of Sending Personal Sensitive Information?
Table of Content
1. Use Local Hard Drive
One of the ways you can send personal sensitive information securely is to use the local hard drive. The basic thing you need to do is to make such you store confidential documents on a local hard drive, rather than on the cloud.
2. Secured Email Address
You can also send personal sensitive information securely via a secured email address. Please note that when you are sending personal sensitive information via email, make sure you double-check the email address and the sender’s name before your email-sensitive documents. Cybercriminals can change the sender’s name to impersonate people and organizations.
3. Verified and Secured Webform
You can also send your personal sensitive information securely via a verified and secured web form. When you are required to fill a form online, make sure you type web addresses into your browser. Please never click on links in an email or copy and paste a link from an email.
Make sure that a website has “HTTPS” in the web address before you enter any information. This indicates that the website uses a secure connection. Please note that if you are not comfortable with the options listed above, or if you need more security than the usual, you might want to do the following;
4. Use Fax over Private IP
Using a fax machine is one of the most secure means to send documents. Fax machines are far less connected than email accounts. And they are basically immune to information theft scams. Since there are fewer ways to breach a fax connection, fax is one of the most secure ways to send sensitive information.
Interestingly, modern fax machines can and do connect through the internet, using a SIP trunk. However, the fax connection can be isolated and encrypted by sending the information through private IP networks.
A private IP network keeps faxed information from traveling over the public internet. That makes it very difficult for cybercriminals to intercept the information in transit. It is much more difficult to gain access to a private network, let alone break into it.
Even if a cybercriminal tries to intercept a fax data while it is in transit, the network encrypts the data and the cybercriminal cannot read or use that data. That is two layers of protection, in addition to the fact that fax connections are targeted far less than email accounts.
Please note that if sending your documents online is just your only option, then you should partner with a communications provider that enables you to send faxes over an IP network. That way you get the convenience of digital communication, with the security of legacy phone systems.
5. Use Encrypted File Sharing Service
Another highly secured means of sending a personal sensitive message is making use of an encrypted file sharing service. An encrypted file sharing service is cloud storage that encrypts the files while they are in storage. If you need to send a file to someone, you send them a link to access the file on your encrypted cloud storage drive.
This is how it works; the encrypted file sharing service decrypts the file before sending it to the expected receiver. Some services send a separate decryption key. That way the file stays encrypted while it is being transmitted.
Please note that there is a difference between fax over IP and encrypted file-sharing services. The biggest difference is that encrypted file-sharing services are designed to address the issues of public internet connectivity and email without the limited connectivity of fax machines.
Encrypted file sharing is far more secure than email. However, it still relies on the public internet. And cloud storage is just as connected as email. In a way, encrypted file sharing has one very strong layer of security, and fax has two very strong layers of security.
6. Personally Deliver the Personal Sensitive Information
Lastly, another secured way of sending sensitive personal information is to personally deliver the sensitive information yourself. Yes, you read right! The truth is that, with technology, you cannot be 100 percent sure that your personal sensitive information cannot leak while in transit from one email address to another or from one fax machine to another.
So, if you don’t have confidence in the options listed above, then you should take the pain of personally taking the sensitive information to the receiver.
In Conclusion,
It is important to note that all these best practices listed above may not entirely protect your sensitive information from some highly-specialized hackers. But absolutely, they will help stop you from falling for scams designed to steal your information. To be truly secure, the message must be encrypted before it leaves the sender’s computer and it must remain encrypted until the recipient receives it.